Air conditioning apparatus



jm W9 E L HART AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 17, 1,9@58

m EZ, B5 E. L. HART AIR cownlTomNc APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Shee 2 Filed March 17, 1948 .INVENTR.

Patented Jan. 17, 1950 'AIB CONDITIONING APPARATUS Edward L. Hart, Abington, Pa., allignorto Phiho Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation o! Pennsylvania Application March 17, 1948, Serial No. 15,383

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to refrigerating apparatus and, particularly, to air conditioning apparatus of a compact and unitary type, and to a novel mode of disposing of the condensate which normally results during operation of such apparatus.

In air conditioners, and particularly in apparatus of the type commonly referred to as single room coolers,A it is of substantial importance thatthe overall 'dimensions o the apparatus or unit be as small as possible. Achievement of this end has presented problems of considerable come plexity, especially in view of the relatively large capacity which is desired in present day units of this kind. Basically, Vthe refrigeration circuit employed in such units is well known, and the measure of public acceptance accorded apparatus of this type depends to a substantial degree4 on reducing its overall dimensions to the smallest possible compass; it being important, however, that such reduction be accomplished without sacrifie of either capacity or exibility of operation, and with adequate provision for disposal of the condensate which results from contact of moisture laden air with the evaporator.

It is the primary object of my invention to provide a room cooling unit which is unusually small and compact, and in which those constructional features, fromywhich ow the compactness, result in a substantial improvement in the efficacy of the moisture removing apparatus.

To the foregoing ends, the invention contemplates the provisionv of refrigerating or air conditioning apparatus of the type including evaporator and condenser elements, or coils, and means for forcibly circulating air in heat exchange relation with said coils, and in which the coils have such'novel disposition with respect tothe air circulating means as both to minimize the overall dimensions of the unit and to vimprove the moisture removal characteristics of the apparatus. Among the more important advantages of the unit are the following:

A. The relative disposition of elements contemplated by the present invention facilitates re-x duction in size of the apparatus.

B. Due to the novel angular relationship between the face of each coil and the air stream directed thereagainst, uniformity of air flow through the entire coil is achieved, as each iin peels oil a layer of air and directs it through a corresponding section of the coil.

C. Uniformity of distribution of the condensate (derived from the evaporator) over the entrance or confronting face of the condenser is 2 insured, thereby increasing the evaporation rate. In this connection, it is to be understood that the evaporation takes place from the v:surface ot the condenser and, therefore, the greater the surface that is wetted, the greater will be the evaporation rate. It will be evident that there is not suillcient heat present in any representative small portion of the condenser to provide adequate ,vaporization 4if considerablev condensate is concentrated in the region of said small portion. D. Large droplets of water entrained inthe condenser air. stream are broken-up into a very fine mist, thus insuring against transmission of such droplets through the condenser and to outdoorswhere staining of the wall, pluvious effusions upon subjacent itinerants, or like disadvantages may result. Y

The manner in which the foregoing objects and advantages are realized, together with others which will-occur to those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains, will be understood from a considerationof the accompanying drawings forming a part of this disclosure, and in which:

Figure 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic plan view of air conditioning apparatus incorporating the concepts of the present invention;

Figurez is a sectional view of the lower portion of the apparatus, the view being taken along the line 2-2 of Figure l;

Figure 3 is a view, partly in section and partlyv in' elevation, and illustrating the apparatus as viewed in the direction indicated by the line 3 3, applied to Figure 1; and,

Figure 4 is an elevational view, on a greatly enlarged scale, showing the angular relationship between the condenser air stream and a fragmentary portion of the face of the condenser, and illustrating an advantageous action which takes place during removal of condensate.

Now making more detailed reference to Figure 1, in which there is illustrated air conditioning apparatus comprising a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it will be seen thatl the apparatus, or unit, comprises a casing, designated generally by the reference numeral lil, which casing encloses a refrigerating system including a motor-compressor Il, a condenser i2, an evaporator I3, and associated conduits through the agency of which said compressor, condenser and evaporator are coupled '-'in series flow circuit. These conduits include a discharge line il, through which compressed refrigerant -is delivered to the condenser l2, a feed line l5 which, as shown. may advantageously comprise a continu- .outside air flowing into the ously open restricted connection through which liquified refrigerant is fed to the evaporator for expansion therein. As .is illustrated at Il, a strainer is preferably included in the feed line. and a suction conduit l'l-a portion of which is provided with `thermal insulation-serves to return the volatilized refrigerant to the compressor Il. Disposed in generally axial parallelism' with the above-described sealed system is air moving apparatus including a motor I8 and a pair of blowers I9 and 20 which, respectively, are adapted to cause circulation of air in heat exchange relation with the evaporator I 3 and the condenser i2. The blowers are housed in scroll structures, shown at i90 and 20a, respectively, and which structures are cooperable with partitioning elements, as now described.

Centrifugal blowers are preferably employed, not only because of capacity and efficiency considerations, but also because they ail'ord greater directional control of the air stream than is achievable with propeller type fans.

As indicated at 2l, the cabinet is provided with a partition serving to divide the same into an evaporator chamber 22 and a condensing chamber 23. That portion of the cabinet which comprises the' evaporator chamber (the portion lying to the left of dashed line 2|, in Figure 1) is adapted to extend into a room or zone the air of which is to be conditioned, while that section of the cabinet lying to the right of said dashed line extends outwardly of the room, preferably through a window opening thereof.

The evaporator chamber 22 is, in turn, subdivided by means of a partition 25, into a section housing the blower and scroll assembly I9-iSa, and a portion within which is disposed the evaporator i3. The mouth 26 of scroll isa extends through partition 25 and into position to direct air against one face of the evaporator i3. Suitable air ingress and egress openings indicated at 2l and 28, respectively, provide for circulation of room' air into the casing i0, through a filter shown at 29, thence into the scroll structure ia, from whence the air is forcibly circulated, by blower i9, in heat exchange relation with the evaporator i3 and redelivered to the room or space to be conditioned through the aforesaid egress opening 28. Similarly, the condensing chamber 23 is subdivided by partitioning elements shown at 8i! and 3| to provide three sub-compartments] one of which` houses the compressor li andthe blower motor i8, another the blower and scroll assembly 2li-20a, and within the third of which is disposed condenser i2. `The condensing unit is cooled by chamber 23 through either or both of the inlet openings shown at 32 and 33. As shown by the arrows indicative of air circulation, the air flowing into chamber 23 is delivered to scroll 20a and directed through condenser |2 by blower 20, finally being delivered to the outside atmosphere through a port, represented at 34 which latter is provided with suitable louvers, as designated at 34a, in Figure 3.l The primary paths of air circulation, and the functions performed by the resultant heat exchange will be understood without further explanation. However, it is to be noted that a certain amount of the outside air introduced through the inlet opening 33 may be mixed with the recirculated air passing in heat exchange relation with the evaporator, as will now appear.

As best seen in Figure 2, evaporator I3 has its lower surface supported within a pan-like struc- 75 ture 3l, which latter is elevated somewhat above the door of the air conditioning apparatus. It is to be understood that the above-mentioned partition 25 extends 'upwardly from the pan-like member I5 and that. as is indicated by arrows appearing in both Figures 1 and 2, air owing inwardly through opening 33 may be passed beneaththe pan 35, through a filtering screen 31 and introduced into that chamber which houses the evaporator blower. 'In this latter chamber such outside air is mixed with recirculated air flowing in through egress opening 21, and the resultant mixture is forced through evaporator Il and delivered to the room.

As thus far described, and with especial reference to the components of the air conditioning apparatus and to the functions performed thereby, the unit ismore or less conventional in nature and its broad principles of operation are now well known.

In particular accordance vention. and as will now be set forth, the relative disposition of certain of these components with respect to the two primary paths of air movement, and the angular disposition of said components within the air conditioner housing, are novel and particularly advantageous in that there results an unusually small and compact unit. es well as a substantial improvement in the efiicacy of the moisture removing apparatus described hereinafter.

In this connection, it is to be noted that both the evaporator and condenser elements, or coils, are so angularly positioned, with respect to their associated blowers, as to result in uniformity of distribution of the moving air over the confronting faces of the coils, and consequent advantages both from the standpoint of a considerable reduction in the dimensions of the unit and in that a substantial improvement is effected in the moisture removal characteristics thereof.

Firstly, and making reference to the condenser and its associated blower, by Way of example, it is seen that the condenser is so angled with respect to the direction of movement of the air flowing from blower assembly Ztl-20a that the projected length of the rear face of said condenser, on the cross-sectional width of the air stream leaving the mouth 38 of scroll 29a, is substantially equal to said width. Thus the air stream blankets the face of the condenser, and impinges obliquely thereagainst at an angle such that side portions oi' the condenser fins are struck. The importance of this oblique impingement is discussed further, hereinafter. The rear face of evaporator I3 is similarly oriented with respect to the air stream flowing from blower assembly |9-l9a. a

In arrangements commonly employed heretofore, the heat exchange coils were so disposed that the air flowing therethrough was ldirected at said coils along a line substantially normal to one face of the coil. That is, the maior axis of the heat exchange coil in right angular relationwith respect to the direction from which air impinged upon the coil. Now with such prior structures, it is necessary to space the face of the coil from the mouth of the blower a considerable distance, this distance being sufficiently great of the air conditioning to the dimension of the ,tion 2|, as seen in Figure in such prior structures, right angular relationship to render one dimension unit substantially equal novel unit along parti- 1. On the other hand, due to the aforesaid betweenthe coils and with the present in-I was commonly disposed from the fan or blower.

their associated blowers, the other coordinate. dimension (that dimension represented by the width of the unit as illustrated in Figure l) was very considerably in excess of the comparable dimension in the apparatus of this invention. Considered from another point of view, the coil disposition contemplated by the present inveni tion is achieved Without materially increasing one In other known devices, the fan has been so disposed as to direct air in a stream paralleling one face of the coil, an angled bafile being used to redirect the air toward said face. I-Iere again results have been unsatisfactory, in that the air, due to its momentum, was largely concentrated in that region of the coil which is most removed Attempts were made to meet this problem by the addition of so-called splitters, which channelled the air into separate streams, each of which was directed at a corresponding zone of the coil face. However, such expedients increased the cost of the apparatus and did not eliminate concentration vof air Within the more remote region ofl each of the separate channels.

In short, while a variety of air flow arrangements have been available, none has yielded the uniformity of distribution available with the apparatus disclosed and claimed herein, and most such arrangements have resulted in relatively large and cumbersome apparatus.

As setl forth, supra, such uniformity of air dis tribution results in a corresponding uniformity of the manner in which the condensate (derived from the evaporator) is distributed over the con'- denser. Prior to a more particularized consideration of this aspect of the invention, however, the condensate-collecting apparatus will be described.

As will be understood, normal operation of the unit results in accumulation of considerable condensate formed by virtue of contact of moistureladen air with the evaporator I3; since, during such contact, the temperature of the air is reduced below the dew point. This moisture iiows downwardly through the evaporator I3 and is collected in the above-mentioned pan-like member 35 (Figure 2) from whence it is delivered, through a pipe 39 to the vicinity of condenser l2. -From said pipe the moisture flows downwardly and accumulates around the lower portion of condenser I2, as is indicated at 40, in Figure 3. The partition 3l cooperates with a second pan member 42 (Figure 2) to confine .the moisture to the .vicinity of the condenser. 'I'he lower portion of the condenser comprises a horizontally disposed coil loop 43 and a plurality of short ns 44 terminating below the main overlying fin structure. As will be appreciated, the loop 43 contains hot refrigerant delivered from the compressor through the agency of discharge line I4,

and heat from such hot refrigerant is delivered to the condensate within pan 42 thereby Vaporizing a portion of said condensate, the resultant vapor being carried off from the unit by the air stream owng from blower 20.

Frequently, such removal of condensate does not occur at a rate equal to the rate at which condensate is formed at the evaporator, and provision must be made to take care of the unusually high humidity conditions which occasion this result. To this end', the partition 3l is provided with an aperture ll through which excess condensate may flow into a pan 46 which underlies the scroll 20a. When moisture has accu- .'mulated in the pan 46 to the level of the scroll, that is the level indicated at dl, moisture is drawn upwardly through aperture lid, provided in the lower portion of scroll 2da, and is entrained substantially uniformly throughout the cross-section of the air stream directed toward the condenser I2, in known manner. Such entrained moisture is. of course, iorcedoutwardly throughthe scroll mouth 38 and impinges obliquely upon the angled confronting face of condenser l2.

As a.result of the aforesaid angularity, and as clearly illustrated in Figure 4, each of the condenser fins 49 peels off an elemental layer from the air stream impinging upon the condenser, each elemental layer then* being redirected by the iins 49 and thus caused to fiow through the condenser and be expelled to the atmosphere through egress opening 34.

In contradistinction to the arrangements of prior practice, the moisture entrained with the air.stream does not pass directly through the condenser-resulting in disadvantages indicated above-but first strikes the fins 49 in the manner shown in Figure 4. The velocity of the impinging air and therefore of the entrained moisture is considerable, and the relatively large droplets entrained in the moving air stream are broken-up into a very iine mist, by virtue of the impingement and the evaporation taking place at the surface of the condenser. The resultant mist, or vapor, flows through the condenser and is delivered to the outside atmosphere.

It is a feature of the described apparatus that the entrained condensate is uniformly distributed over the face area of the condenser rather than being concentrated in a relatively small portion of the condenser, as would be the case if the 45 direction of air impingement were normal with respect to the major axis of the condenser structure. As will now be understood, there is not suflicient heat present in any elemental portion of the condenser to provide adequate vaporiza- 50 tion, if considerable condensate is concentrated in the region of said portion. However, with the apparatus of the present invention, there results uniform distribution of the condensate, rather than concentration thereof, and a corresponding 55 increase in the vaporization rate.

From the foregoing description, it will now be understood that apparatus incorporating the concepts of the present invention is characterized by a high degree of compactness, and that 60 the relative disposition of components-which makes it possible to realize such compactnessresults both in more effective use of the heat exchange surfaces of the evaporator and condenser, and in substantially improved moisture 65 removal characteristics.

I claim:

1. An air conditioner or the like, comprising: a generally rectangular housing; an evaporator element within said housing and so disposed as 70 to extend angularly across one corner of the housing; a condenser element within said housing and so disposed as to extend angularly across an adjacent corner of the housing; each of said elements including a plurality of fins defining 75 parallel passages through the element, air propelling means disposed within another corner portion of said housing and operableto direct a stream of cooling air in heat exchange relation with said condenser element; and second air Y propelling means disposed inthe other corner with Ithat the air impinges against side portions of said fins and is redirected thereby and caused to flow through said parallel passages.

2. In air conditioning apparatus or the like: a housing; an evaporator disposed within said housing; a condenser disposed within said housing and having a substantially flat face; blower means within said housing for forcibly directing a stream of air against the said face of said condenser; means providing for exit of the air stream from said housing immediately following contact of said air with said condenser; and means for delivering condensate derived from the evaporator to said blower means and for entraining droplets of said condensate in said air stream substantially uniformly .throughout the cross-section thereof, said condenser vface having at least one dimension considerably in excess of any right angular cross-sectional dimension of-said air stream, and said condenser being so angularly disposed with respect to the direction of movement ofsaid air stream that the projection of the said one dimension upon a crosssectional dimension of the air stream-in a plane normal to the direction of movement thereof-is substantially equal to said cross-sectional dimension, whereby to insure substantially uniform distribution of the entrained condensate over said face.

3. In air conditioning apparatus or the like: a housing; an evaporator disposed within said housing; a condenser disposed within said housing including a substantially flat face and a plurality lof fin elements arranged in general parallelism and with their major axes extending in right angular relation with respect to said fiat face; means for passing a stream of air in heat exchange relation with said condenser; means for delivering condensate derived from the evaporator to said last-mentioned means and for entraining droplets of said condensate in said air stream, said condenser face being so obliquely disposed with respect to the direction of movement of said air stream that the air stream and the condensate entrained' therein impinges against side portions of said iin elements and is redirected thereby and caused to ilow through said condenser between the said iin elements, and said housing being provided with an aperture in close adjacency to said condenser so that said air stream is forcibly expelled from said A housing through said aperture immediately upon el U passing through said condenser between said iin elements.

4. For air conditioning apparatus or the like, in combination: a housing having air ingress and egress openings; a condenser including a plurality of iin elements arranged in general parallelism; a blower having scroll structure and effective to draw air inwardly through said ingress opening and thereafter to force said air in a stream against said condenser in a direction such that the air impinges against side portions of said iin elements, being redirected by the latter and passing through said condenser between said nn elements; means for introducing moisture into said scroll structure and for entraining said moisture as droplets of appreciable size throughout the cross-section of the air stream; and means conning said air stream to a path such that the air is distributed substantially uniformly across the surface of said condenser, said condenser being so disposed with respect to said egress opening that said air stream-after redirection by said iin elementspasses directly from said housing throughv said egress opening.

EDWARD L. HART.

REFERENCES 'CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

. UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,125,727 Kalischer Aug. 2, 1938 2,213,347 Neeson Sept. 3, 1940 2,251,907 Hoesel Aug. '12, 1941 2,359,051 Roper Sept. 26, 1944 2,386,883 Ames Oct. 16, 1945 2,447,278 Roper Aug. 17, 1948 

